NEW YORK, United States — Over the weekend, Band of Outsiders’ Scott Sternberg put on a lovely low-key show for his two women’s collections —Boy and Girl — underneath The Highline on New York’s West side. But earlier this summer he pulled out all the stops for a spectacular West Side Story-themed show for his Spring/Summer 2012 menswear collection as a special guest designer at the 80th edition of Pitti Uomo in Florence, Italy.

Sternberg’s star has been rising in international fashion circles, despite his having no formal fashion training; despite his decision to base his business in Los Angeles, far from the fashion mainstream; and despite price points that position his collection closer to high-end European brands than the surfeit of lookalike American contemporary brands which also call Los Angeles home.

I caught up with Scott at the gorgeous Villa Cora hotel the day after his Pitti show to understand the thinking behind these strategic decisions and learn more about his plans for the future of Band of Outsiders.